Man shot dead during Turkey’s anti-government protest

The Hatay province governor's office said on Tuesday that the man was shot during a demonstration in Antakya city and later died in hospital. It suggested, however, that he may have been shot by demonstrators trying to inflame tensions, saying police had been fired on during the protest.

Thousands have joined anti-government rallies across Turkey to voice discontent with the 10-year rule of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The protests, the biggest Turkey has seen in recent years, were sparked by police crackdown of a peaceful sit-in to prevent demolition of a park in Istanbul.

Another protester was reportedly killed in Istanbul on Monday. Officials said that death was accidental.

Erdoğan on Sunday rejected claims that he is a "dictator", dismissing protesters as an extremist fringe.

Over the past three days, protesters around the country have unleashed pent-up resentment against Erdoğan, who, after 10 years in office, many Turks see as an uncompromising figure with undue influence in every part of life. – Sapa-AP

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The National Health Laboratory Services finally admitted to a bottleneck last week, after denying there were any issues since April. According to the service, the backlog of 80 000 tests started in the first week of May